1.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 1
This survey was conducted
by Ipsos on behalf of ING
Examining money choices in Europe, USA and Australia
Savings February 2018ING International Survey
Savings comfort 
a path to happiness

2.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 2
Table of contents
3 About the ING International Survey
4 Executive summary
5 Infographic
6 Savings, happiness, relationships
› “Happy  and comfortable with my savings, thanks”
› Can joining forces on money make you happy?
› Teaming up to fight the big financial battles
› Managing money and the state of your relationship
› Two heads better on a range of financial decisions
› Talking money? Not always boring, and can be helpful
› “Don’t tell  but I have something hidden away”
14 Are you happy with your finances?
› About one in four across Europe have no savings
› A connection between having money and happiness
› What happens when you have run out of money?
› Many with debt to struggle as interest rates rise
19 Contact details
20 Disclaimer

3.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 3
15
1,000
14,806
Austria
Belgium
Czech Republic
France
Germany
Italy
Luxembourg
Netherlands
Poland
Romania
Spain
Turkey
United Kingdom
USA
Australia
About the ING
International Survey
The ING International Survey aims to gain a
better understanding of how people around the
globe spend, save, invest and feel about money.
It is conducted several times a year, with reports
hosted at www.ezonomics.com/iis.
Ipsos conducted this survey between 19 October
and 31 October 2017. Sampling reflects gender
ratios and age distribution, selecting from pools
of possible respondents furnished by panel
providers in each country. European consumer
figures are an average, weighted to take
country population into account.
countries are compared
in this report.
About 1,000 respondents were surveyed in
each, apart from Luxembourg, with 500.
is the total sample size
of this report.
The survey

4.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 4
Money might not buy happiness but it can help 
that’s what the findings imply in our seventh savings
survey, the ING International Survey Savings 2018.
Fifty-seven percent of respondents across Europe
replied either “yes” or “most of the time” when asked
if they feel happy in general. Only 10% said “no” or
“rarely” and 32% “sometimes”.
Forty-seven percent of the happy group reported
that they were comfortable with their savings level.
Savings comfort was noticeably rarer among those
who said they were happy sometimes (21%) and
those who said they were unhappy (13%).
Of course, savings comfort may not on its own make
a person happy. But our results suggest a link:
comfort with the amount of savings one has readily
available is clearly one of the many factors that can
contribute to overall happiness.
Yet many still have no savings
Unfortunately, many people continue to tell us year
after year that they have no readily available savings
at all  or only a small amount. In 2018, 26% across
Europe say their household has no savings at all; over
the seven years of our survey there has been little
change to this figure.
At least three to six months of take-home pay is
usually recommended as an appropriate buffer for
covering emergencies. Having this amount saved
could mean, for example, that unexpected car or
house repairs can be paid for without going into debt.
The money-savings relationship also appears to
reflect the degree of closeness in a couple’s
relationship. Those who are in a relationship and who
report being happy are also more likely to say the
pair largely or fully combine their finances.
How do joint finances affect happiness?
Fifty-five percent of people who say they’re happy
and in a couple in our survey indicated they fully or
almost completely combine their finances. Half of
respondents in this situation say they’re happy
sometimes while 46% report unhappiness.
“The money-savings relationship also
appears to reflect the degree of
closeness in a couple’s relationship”
Couples who manage their money jointly are likelier
than those who don’t to have a joint bank account
and regularly receive joint statements. These were
much more powerful indicators of joint finances than
making specific financial decisions together.
Of those in a duo who consider their finances
completely or largely combined, 33% report they
have already set up a shared bank account. Only six
percent of those in couples with almost or fully
separate finances have a joint bank account, a stark
26 percentage point difference.
Another 41% of people in couples who manage their
money jointly say they are likely or very likely to
open a joint bank account. Just 26% of those with
separate finances say the same  a 15 percentage
point gap.
Just 10% of those in couples who combine their
finances say they’re unlikely or very unlikely to open
a shared bank account. There’s a 32 percentage
point gap between this group and the 42% in couples
who manage their finances separately. This suggests
that those who consider their finances separate from
their partner’s may be unlikely to change their
financial relationships.
Joint decisions link to other choices
Other financial decisions  such as budgeting and
making large purchasing decisions (for instance,
buying a car)  were noticeably more likely among
those in couples who combined their finances.
Fleur Doidge, writer/editor
Ian Bright, senior economist
Shared decision-making a bonus when managing household savings
Comfort with savings correlates with happiness  yet many in Europe, the USA and Australia still put nothing aside
Executive summary

5.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 5
Is it true that money can’t buy happiness? The ING International Survey Savings
2018 asked nearly 15,000 people across Europe, the USA and Australia how they
think about their savings. Results reveal a link between good money skills,
closeness in relationships, and feelings of individual happiness.
Working together to nurture your finances
Infographic

6.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 6
Savings,
happiness,
relationships

7.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 7
The question
Savings, happiness, relationships
Do you feel happy, in general? / Are you comfortable or
uncomfortable with the amount your household has saved?
Europe totals only. Self-reported happiness versus feelings of comfort with savings level.
“Happy  and comfortable
with my savings, thanks”
Our ING International Survey Savings 2018, seventh in an annual series
covering 13 countries in Europe, the USA and Australia, shows a
correlation between people’s happiness levels and whether they are
comfortable with the amount of money they have managed to save.
Correlation isn’t causation, so happy people may be likelier to say
they’re comfortable anyway. Nevertheless, 47% of the happy group
are comfortable with their savings level. Just 19% of those who are
happy say they are uncomfortable.
That compares with the 62% of the unhappy group who are
uncomfortable with their savings level. Among those who are
unhappy, just 13% say they are comfortable with the amount they
have managed to save.
Those who indicate they are only happy “sometimes” are more likely
to be “neither comfortable nor uncomfortable” with their savings.
The full data set shows that overall 57% of Europeans say they are
generally happy, 32% are “sometimes” happy, and just 10% are
unhappy. Results from the USA and Australia were similar.
Comfort with debt (excluding mortgage debt) has a weaker link
with unhappiness. The correlation between higher savings
comfort levels and happiness was stronger. We also did not find
significant differences in how people respond based on age or
whether the respondents were men or women.
Unhappy people and debt comfort
13%
21%
47%
25%
39%
34%
62%
40%
19%
Unhappy
Sometimes
happy/
unhappy
Happy
Comfortable Neither Uncomfortable
Sample size: 12,794

8.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 8
The question
Savings, happiness, relationships
Do you feel happy, in general? / Select the option below that
best describes your situation with your partner.
Europeans who are in a relationship; their overall happiness; and whether they almost or completely combine
their money, partly combine them, or manage them almost or completely separately.
Can joining forces on
money make you happy?
Our results suggest that comfort with savings correlates with overall
happiness levels. We also find that people who are happy and in
couples are somewhat more likely (by nine percentage points) to
completely or largely combine their finances, compared to unhappy
people who are part of a couple.
People may keep their finances separate because they are unhappy 
for example, if there is a lack of trust. It’s equally possible that
combining finances may directly boost overall happiness.
Most individual countries follow the above pattern, but there are
exceptions. In Austria, for example, happy and unhappy people
answer similarly whether they manage their finances jointly or not.
In Romania and Spain, people in couples with separate finances are
much less likely to say they are happy than those who combine them.
Beyond Europe, figures for the USA resemble the European average.
In Australia the shares who combine their finances are similar among
the happy group (43%) and the unhappy (46%) group.
How we defined a “relationship”
In our survey, we asked people about their living arrangements.
We counted respondents who said that they were part of a
couple who lived together, whether they had children or not and
lived in a house with other people or on their own, as romantic
partners for the purposes of our research on savings in 2018.
46%
50%
55%
17%
20%
20%
32%
28%
23%
Unhappy
Sometimes
happy/unhappy
Happy
Combined Some combined, some separate Separate
Sample size: 7,829

9.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 9
The question
Select the option below that best describes your situation with
your partner.
Shares of people with partners who say their finances are fully or largely combined. Options were “completely
separate”, “largely separate”, “some separate, some combined”, “largely combined”, “fully combined” or
“prefer not to answer”.
Savings, happiness, relationships
Differences by age and gender
Across the European countries surveyed, the 18-24 age group is
likeliest to say their finances are completely separate (28%),
with the share falling with age to 13% among the 65+ group.
Among those who are 55+, 42% have fully combined their
finances. Men and women answer similarly, regardless of age.
Teaming up to fight
the big financial battles
A problem shared is a problem halved, or so the saying goes. Results
on the previous page suggest that managing your money as a couple
or household can be good for your emotional wellbeing.
Sixty-one percent of all 14,806 respondents in Europe, the USA and
Australia indicate they are part of a couple or other romantic
partnership.
More than half (53%) in that group say their finances are either
completely or largely combined. The proportion is smallest in Austria
(36%), with the UK (39%) next.
Higher proportions of people who are in couples say they combine
their finances in Romania (71%), the USA (65%), the Netherlands
(64%) and Spain (63%).
Two percent in Europe selected “prefer not to answer”.
53%
36%
39%
48%
49%
50%
51%
52%
52%
54%
59%
63%
64%
71%
61%
65%
European consumer
Austria
United Kingdom
Czech Republic
France
Germany
Luxembourg
Belgium
Poland
Italy
Turkey
Spain
Netherlands
Romania
Australia
USA
Sample size: 9,028

10.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 10
The question
Savings, happiness, relationships
How do you and your partner choose to manage your
finances? / How much overlap is there in your relationship?
Europe only. Chart shows the self-reported degree of overlap in couples’ relationships versus whether they
manage their money together or separately.
Managing money and the
state of your relationship
We were interested in how choosing to manage finances jointly might
relate to the closeness of a couple’s relationship.
With that in mind, we presented respondents with a picture showing a
series of seven pairs of circles which overlapped by different degrees.
They were asked to select the pair of circles that “best describes your
current relationship with your romantic partner”, where circle A stood
for the individual respondent, and circle B represented his or her
partner.
Results are shown on the chart opposite.
We can see that people in a couple who say their relationship mostly
or completely overlaps tend also to say they mostly or fully combine
their finances.
To learn the types of money decisions that couples choose to make
together, see the following page.
45%
53%
72%
32%
35%
20%
21%
10%
7%
3(Mostly) separate
Some separate,
some together
(Mostly) combined
(Almost) complete overlap Somewhere in between
(Almost) no overlap Prefer not to answer
Sample size: 7,829
Overlapping circles signify closeness
When we asked people to rate the degree of overlap in their
relationship we allowed the survey respondents to interpret the
question the way they wish. Answers will tend to represent their
feelings of closeness in a relationship  whether that be
emotional closeness, how “in sync” the couple feel, or in terms of
decisions and making plans together for their future.

11.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 11
The question
Savings, happiness, relationships
How do you and your partner choose to manage your
finances? / How likely or unlikely are you to do the following?
Figures are percentage-point differences between the replies of Europeans in a couple who almost or
completely combine their finances and those who keep their finances almost or completely separate.
Two heads better on a
range of financial decisions
We find that people in couples who mostly or completely combine
their finances are likeliest to have a joint bank account and receive
regular statements.
The chart opposite compares the responses of people in couples who
manage their finances jointly with those in couples whose finances
are mostly or totally separate. The figures on the bars represent the
difference between their responses.
Looking at our full data set, we see that 33% of people in couples who
almost or completely combine their finances have already set up a
joint bank account. Just six percent of the pairs who manage their
money separately have done so. This is a big difference: 26
percentage points (ppt).
The difference between the 41% of people in couples who essentially
combine their finances and the 26% who are part of duos who keep
them separate and say they are “likely” or “very likely” to set up a
joint bank account is 15 percentage points.
We can see also that the difference between the 10% in duos who
have combined their finances and say they are “unlikely” or “very
unlikely” to open a joint bank account and the 42% who are in couples
who keep their finances separate and say they are “unlikely” or “very
unlikely” to open a joint bank account is 32 percentage points.
1%
0%
10
8
10
15ppt
15
14
6
7
7
26ppt
7
7
12
13
17
32ppt
Decide on household budget
Make larger decisions
Decide together how to spend a €100 gift
card
Make smaller decisions
Receive a regular statement
Open joint bank account
(Very) likely I have already done this (Very) unlikely
Sample size: 6,138
Finances
separate
Finances
combined

12.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 12
The question
Savings, happiness, relationships
What do you think about a couple/household having a regular
finance meeting?
Respondents in a couple who selected 1 or 2, where 1 was highest, on scales of 1 to 5 to indicate whether
they feel such meetings would be useful/useless for finances or helpful/harmful for couple’s relationships.
Talking money? Not always
boring, and can be helpful
Surveys sometimes find that families don’t talk enough about money.
The idea has been posited as a reason for poor financial literacy
among adults.
Family financial discussions can benefit children’s money habits and
planning abilities, teaching them how to control their own finances.
In our results, most Europeans in a couple felt it is both useful for
finances (75%) and beneficial for their relationship (69%) to hold
regular household finance meetings. Different age groups and
genders answered similarly.
Residents of Poland are more likely (83%) to say regular money
discussions are useful for finances than people in any other country
surveyed. Luxembourgers and Czechs are least likely to agree with
this – but the difference is small.
We also asked whether household finance meetings are boring or
exciting. Encouragingly, only 34% of people in European couples said
“boring”; 42% said “exciting”. Twenty-four percent were neutral.
Subjects for the money discussion
Our full database reveals that on average 49% of respondents in
European couples who combine their finances say they are
“likely” or “very likely” to make smaller decisions together, such
as purchasing clothing. The share rises to 59% when it comes to
making larger financial decisions, such as buying a car.
69%
61%
61%
61%
66%
66%
67%
69%
70%
70%
70%
71%
74%
78%
71%
73%
75%
71%
72%
70%
71%
73%
75%
78%
77%
73%
74%
77%
78%
83%
75%
75%
European consumer
Luxembourg
Austria
Czech Republic
Germany
United Kingdom
France
Spain
Belgium
Italy
Netherlands
Turkey
Romania
Poland
Australia
USA
Helpful for relationships Useful for finances
Sample size: 8,419

13.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 13
The question
Savings, happiness, relationships
What are the reasons you would keep some spending, savings
or debt secret from your partner?
Chart shows answers from the three percent of respondents across Europe who are in a couple and have kept
a financial issue secret from their partner. Multiple selections possible.
“Don’t tell – but I have
something hidden away”
For some people in a couple, though, there can be aspects of their
finances they might hide from their partner. Among European
couples, a tiny share  three percent  say they have a money secret.
We asked this small three percent group why they have kept some
spending, saving or debt from their spouse or partner. Their answers
are displayed on the chart opposite.
About one in three (34%) of this three percent responded simply that
they “like to keep some things private”.
Twenty-eight percent argue rather that they are “better at managing
finances” than their partner.
About one in four say they don’t want to bother their partner, or
suggest that they like to surprise them sometimes with a gift.
Roughly one in 10 give more negative answers, such as feelings of
guilt or inferiority, or hiding debts, or simply that they feel they have
poorer money skills than their partner.
Another 21% in Europe indicate they might potentially keep a money
secret from their partner. Answers were similar in the USA and
Australia.
2%
4%
8%
9%
9%
10%
11%
16%
24%
25%
28%
34%
Other, namely
Our finances are separate
I am embarrassed that I have
more/less
My partner is better at
managing finances
I don't want my partner to
know how much debt I have
I feel guilty
My finances are none of his or
her business
I don't want my partner to
know how much I spend
When it is for a gift for my
partner
I don’t want my partner to
worry
I am better at managing
finances
I like to keep some things
private
Sample size: 1,483

14.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 14
Are you
happy with
your finances?

15.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 15
The question
Are you happy with your finances?
Does your household have any savings?
Shares in each country who answered “no”. These figures exclude those who replied “prefer not to answer”.
About one in four across
Europe have no savings
In our 2018 survey, 26% of respondents on average across Europe
admit their household has no savings at all. Most countries are close to
the average, with Luxembourg and Romania the notable exceptions.
The primary reason people don’t save is that they just don’t have
enough money. And even if they can spare the cash, changing
behaviour from a default position of saving only a little, or even not
saving at all, can be difficult.
Present bias and apathy can encourage inertia. A few may feel a
social welfare “safety net” will be available to support them – but
systems can and do change. Lack of education can play a role.
There are multiple possible causes of an inability to save.
European Central Bank (ECB) monetary policy has in recent years kept
interest rates low, reducing the incentive to save. And consumer
confidence has been at very high levels, suggesting an appetite to
spend rather than save in late 2017 and early 2018.
With employment continuing to rise, household incomes may grow;
savings may start to rise too if households are in a better position to
put money aside. Nonetheless, wage rises remain muted at the time
of writing, indicating any increase may be modest in the near-term.
Nearly five percent in Europe chose “prefer not to answer”.
In 2017 we asked whether individuals had any savings; this year we
asked about households. The wording was also displayed differently to
respondents online. For these reasons, we cannot compare our results
year on year.
26%
13%
19%
23%
24%
24%
25%
26%
26%
27%
27%
27%
29%
36%
21%
22%
European consumer
Luxembourg
Turkey
Czech Republic
Netherlands
Spain
Italy
Austria
France
United Kingdom
Poland
Belgium
Germany
Romania
USA
Australia
Sample size: 14,088

16.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 16
The question
Are you happy with your finances?
I/we sometimes run out of money / Do you feel happy, in
general?
Chart shows the correlation between whether a household runs out of money and self-reported general
happiness levels. Europe only.
A connection between having
money and happiness
Overall, respondents residing in Europe are less likely to say they feel
happy in general if they also agree that they sometimes run out of
money.
Among those in Europe who say they do not run out of money  and
perhaps feel better able to pay for the wide range of circumstances
that life may throw at them  68% indicate they feel generally happy.
But a much smaller share (46%) of the people in Europe who agree
they sometimes run out of money say they are happy overall.
People may naturally feel happier if they feel in control financially and
have a degree of security.
And it is also possible that unhappy folk may be likelier to spend more
money than they should in an attempt to boost feelings of wellbeing.
Results were similar in the USA and Australia.
68%
46%
26%
38%
6%
16%
Don't run out of money
Run out of money
Happy Neither Unhappy
Sample size: 12,794

17.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 17
The question
Are you happy with your finances?
What types of personal debt does your household have? Select
all that apply (please note that this excludes mortgage debt).
Asked to everyone. Other possible answers include: “I/we have no personal debt”; “loan from a ‘payday’
lender”; “loan from a pawnbroker”; or “prefer not to say”.
What happens when you
have run out of money?
It can be difficult to get people to reveal they are in financial trouble,
that they have more debt than savings put aside, for example. Across
Europe, 48% say their household has no personal debt.
In our survey, the largest share who say this is in the Netherlands
(59%). The smallest shares who say they have no personal debt are in
Turkey (24%) and Luxembourg (33%).
As in previous years, the most common debt type in most countries is
a personal loan. This may be from a bank or another type of financial
services provider.
Exceptions are Turkey, USA, Australia and the UK, which all have much
larger shares with credit card debt than with personal loans. In Turkey,
about half (51%) say they have credit card debt.
Given the typically high interest rates levied from personal credit card
accounts, this is worrying.
Two specific types of debt are not shown on the chart opposite, due to
the very small shares represented. Four percent have payday loans in
the UK and Poland  the only two European countries in our survey
that cite this type of borrowing.
One percent in Europe admit to debt with a pawnbroker, especially in
the Czech Republic (8%), Spain (3%), and Turkey (2%). A few also have
this type of debt in the USA (3%) and Australia (2%).
Five percent in Europe reply “prefer not to say”.
23%
12%
13%
21%
21%
21%
22%
23%
24%
25%
26%
36%
39%
39%
14%
14%
18%
27%
5
5
14%
17%
6%
10%
7%
18%
13%
51%
27%
14%
30%
40%
10%
13%
13%
9%
11%
5
16%
8%
15%
7%
9%
12%
8%
11%
6
7%
8%
7%
6
5
6
7%
8%
7%
5
7%
11%
16%
17%
6
7%
6
6
7
6
10%
5
5
5
4
7%
8%
13%
5
19%
8%
7
10%
12%
6
16%
European consumer
United Kingdom
Netherlands
Germany
Belgium
Spain
Austria
Italy
France
Poland
Czech Republic
Turkey
Romania
Luxembourg
Australia
USA
Personal loan Credit card debt Overdraft
Friends & family Vendor Student loan
Sample size: 14,806

18.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 18
The question
To what extent do you agree or disagree that: “If interest rates
increase, I/we will struggle to pay down my/our debt”?
Shares below are of those who “agree” or “strongly agree” with the above statement and who also indicate
they have debts.
Are you happy with your finances?
What’s on the interest rate horizon?
The monetary policy from the European Central Bank (ECB) has
been keeping interest rates low, reducing the incentive for
individuals and households to save. There are signs this is
changing, in the UK, for example. However, many economists
don’t expect larger policy shifts across Europe until 2019.
Many with debt to struggle
as interest rates rise
Interest rates are predicted to rise over the next 12 months  in some
countries they have already done so.
Sadly, although rising interest rates might be good news if you have
savings, servicing any debts will usually become more costly.
Our survey reveals that 34%  about one in three  of the people who
have debts feel they’ll struggle to pay these off if interest rates rise.
This rises to 56% in Romania, 48% in Turkey, 47% in Spain and 47% in
the USA.
That compares to only one in five (19%) of Dutch residents, 21% in the
Czech Republic, and 22% in Italy.
34%
19%
21%
22%
23%
24%
28%
29%
30%
33%
35%
47%
48%
56%
32%
47%
European consumer
Netherlands
Czech Republic
Italy
Germany
Belgium
United Kingdom
Luxembourg
Poland
Austria
France
Spain
Turkey
Romania
Australia
USA
Sample size: 7,858

19.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 19
Contact details
Country Name Phone number Email
Australia David Breen +61 2 9028 4347 david.breen@ingdirect.com.au
Austria Magdalena Racieski +43 168 0005 0181 magdalena.racieski@ing-diba.at
Belgium Tiziana Rizzo +32 2 738 2896 tiziana.rizzo@ing.be
Czech Republic Martin Tuček +42 02 5747 4364 martin.tuček@ing.cz
France Florence Hovsepian +33 1 5722 5534 florence.hovsepian@ing.fr
Germany Zsófia Köhler +49 69 27 2226 5167 zsofia.koehler@ing-diba.de
Italy Lucio Rondinelli +39 02 5522 6783 lucio.flavio.rondinelli@ing.it
Luxembourg Yves Denasi +352 4499 9632 yves.denasi@ing.lu
The Netherlands Senne Janssen +31 6 5787 5332 senne.janssen@ing.nl
Poland Miłosz Gromski +48 22 820 4093 milosz.gromski@ingbank.pl
Romania Elena Duculescu +40 73 800 1219 elena-andreea.duculescu@ing.ro
Spain Luis Alfonso Guerricagoitia Tortajada +34 91 206 7982 luis.alfonso.guerricagoitia.tortajada@ing.com
Turkey Hasret Gunes +90 21 2335 1000 hasret.gunes@ingbank.com.tr
UK Ian Bright +44 20 7767 6656 ian.bright@ing.com
Editor Fleur Doidge +44 20 7767 5567 fleur.doidge@ing.com
Ipsos Nieko Sluis +31 20 607 0707 nieko.sluis@ipsos.com

20.
ING International Survey Savings February 2018 20
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